Posts Tagged ‘pores’

The colder months can be pretty rough on my face, and so I usually dedicate one evening each week to babying it. I usually do this every Sunday evening, and thought I’d share my little pampering ritual with you today!

First Thing’s First
I like to first soften my skin and open up my pores, so I start by steaming my face. I begin by boiling some water and placing a few drops of either lavender essential oil or some tea tree oil in it. If I’ve had a particularly rough week I’ll opt for the lavender, but if my skin is giving me grief then I’ll switch it for tea tree oil instead. I simply lower my face close to the water and cover my head with a towel. Then I sweat it out for about 5 minutes.

Wash it Away
Now that my skin is supple and damp I like to use a grainy cleanser to clear away everything that’s just been drawn out of my pores. I typically have dry skin which is aggravated by this cold weather, so I really adore Lush’s Angels on Bare Skin cleanser. This gentle moisturizing scrub contains chamomile blue oil and ground almonds, which works absolute wonders on my finicky skin.

Draw Those Imperfections Out of Hiding!
Next I rinse away the cleanser with warm water, pat my face dry, and proceed to apply a thick clay mask over my t-zone as my pores in that region are rather large. In the winter I can get away with doing a mask only once a week, but in the summer I apply it much more frequently. My favorite is the Body Shop’s Seaweed Ionic Clay mask. I leave it on until it hardens and then rinse it away with warm water.

Tone & Tighten
Now, I quickly rinse my face with cool water (this is a natural way of closing pores) and move on to apply my toner. I adore La Roche Posay’s Effaclar Toner, as it’s great for tightening pores and keeping skin matte. It leaves skin feeling smooth without the tightness associated with most toners.

Hydrate
Lastly I moisturize, using two different products. I first use Aveda Green Science Firming Eye Cream on my under eye area, and then slather La Roche Posay’s Effaclar H – Compensating Soothing Moisturizer over the rest of my face. The eye cream absorbs rather quickly and doesn’t leave my eye area feeling tight, and I really adore La Roche Posay’s moisturizer because it’s quite light and soothes without leaving any greasy residue. It also helps to keep imperfections at bay, which is a huge plus.

How do you relieve stressed out skin during the colder months? What are favorite products for soothing fragile dry skin? Share with us in a comment below!